The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1887-06-12
STOLE OUT OF SING SING.
A cONpICTS INGENUITY HELPS HIM
TO FRYE Air AGAIN

rot In u Successful Daah fer Liberty.
People living In the river towns twenty
Ave to forty milos north OF this city are inter-
estod In novel kind OF hunting. A convict
has escaped from Sing Sing. and every ne'er-
do-well, and many reputable but financially
hard pressed citizens In that vicinity arc keep
ing their eyes peeled In the hope that they may
recapturc the fugitive, and thus secure the re-
ward OF $50 offered by the State. Convict
hunting is so raro n Sport that 1t has not been
reduced to q science, and the hunters in the
present instance conflne their operations to sly
strolls along the river side and through the
woods and to sharp scrutiny Of all tramps and
hapless-looking strangers generally. Few cases
are on record since the opening Of Sing Sing
prison where tho return OF q convict has boon
effected by a Citizen but the inducement OF the
reward IL sufficient to cause u glow OF hope
| whenever 1t 10 known that runaway is at large.
In the course OF visit to the prison lately the
writer learned from Chief Koepor James Con-
nauKhton the story of tho recent escape, the
first successful attompt in more than two years.
Keeper Connaughton said:
This convict. Henry Stewart, was employed
In tho laundry. Ho had been there oonsidor-
able time, and so knew the ways OF tho prison
thoroughly To understand how he could
| plan his peculiar escane which was the Glow
| crest operation OF the kind that ever happened
my exnsEifi Il y9u IN must s Know tn.t 94r
new s NOT sS 90
hero hundreds OF dozens Of new shirts. and
the, convicts prepare them for tho show ease
bought many a piece q goods tint had tn.
finishing touches PVT on It here Shipments Of
every morning. Stewart was employed in
packing tho cases ut the time. Come TO tho
Ts I, sns w s S way yGa hSy ba il dsG Tint
has boon used IA a laundry since llro do
stroyed the original building few weeks ago
cases were standing thens. They are q uni
about thres ieet and a half long by ono and u
half wide and , two dep Tho covers are easily
TSsas o. the keeper eco IT
was the work, Of but halt a minute whom the
under Keepers attention was ,momsntarily d.
Of an ompty case and yet into II. Qf course no
had a confederate somewhere. who wo have S
operation c had been caroiuy ard thoroughly
attended to in advance. Not only mad hole
e eee u Of fresh air. but tho case in Which e
packed himself had been marked with the
number that identified case In the biii q
nS I'm
Was lifting Them on to Ills wagon he said OF one
Of Thorn: This case seems to have Its weight
Elm understood s him to say that The ease lad
more weight than the others. or something to
that general effect and he replied These , IRE
the goods wore Of extra honyy material
Well. nothing was Thought Of It then. A E
pot ono OF the men came, to me and said that
| Stewart had complained OF being sick that
as lt me ito to assign melody to assist hm in
carrying cases about tho laundry did 80,
e the shops to tie aH9SSy a ho sho
| twelve times q day. sometimes moro, and at
the laundry asked where Stewart vas: The b,
aroused: N:Icns cssS standGIngE il the hnIl:
hand on it and found that il was packed IMll;
That settles it, said tho man Is gone, Jus,
hunted up the car into which the easGs had
been placed There were nine there ~ right
Of oonviet.s clothes: stewart was yery much much
fs Sp
aashs Sd pb t EeS
n hspen again every case
examined now before /. COOS into the wagon"
mo. It is seldom That any method IS tried.
Prisoners will escare, however: do o What VIZ W,
the ' time Nv will DEFY any systom Of Prison SUI
pSSEvsion to t S eaeh
COMPARATIVELY easy. though, \ Is no simple
Mp ea the % 200 s!sS n T hs
act Of secret communication with e prisoner.
or ix 1t upon him BY other evidence. We would
f 9bni qs Is sSs %s he c
slightest suspicion that one. OF the clifton
firs I'm out without eeremony Still eonScts
tho world over lind al, means OF c9mmnniGation,
gates when the citizens went home, or by try
Ing 70 slip out unobserved with Thorn; That Is
la S' Sss H. XII r s soasds
been counted and locked up In ittolf cells.
Then the Gntes arc opened and the citizens
60 out sb without n dsnr resortsd to
for escape Is taking to the river. Some Of them
have been ingeni9qs and s9ccSssfnl and others
iA ioW years ago convict worked in the ma
chine shop who .mado elaborate preparations to
sss aWaE tRo tSp s
take to the water and swim to considerable
aanSs seRa soaa The The aba %s lan o S
above his head to his nose and lips Ito had
Sot everything ready and had set the day I On
hsssh H. tsSe' ssSsS .hf' h.
mo- mo- and md blandcred in his Work. asked hln:
what was the matter. You SEQ. the majority
of ysa give SnnSs Of rn as o ths h aa
proaches for Its. operation. and We get to recog-
| nize the symptoms. He made confused an
swers to my questions and had him marched
to my office and searched, He wore about his
accustomed to carry, and at tho other end g. Of
attached a photograph OF his wife. Tied tOthe
picture. which rested on his hack between his
shoulder blades. was Il lottcr which gave tho
whole thing away. 1t was addressed to his
wife, and no had written 1t so that In case he
should be shot in the attompt II would explain
to, her how IT happened, twas rretty fair
scheme. and whether It would have succeeded
II his nervousness had not betrayed him can
only be conjectured. His name was Scheli
Men have managed to escape by tho river,
though, and not get caught. Aegrious case S Of
tho Kind occurred during my service hore. The
prisoner got out Of Il secOnd-story window, Of a
building near the water's edge, left AL his
clothes, every scrap, behind him. and dlsap-
peared; No trnce was over discovered OF him
friends who were waiting for him in boat
cannot be, told but the probability Is all ig
favor OF tho latter suggestion. for II no had
drowned 1t seems reasonable to suppose that
his body would have turned up some time"
" Are men caught who take to tho riverT
| "Yes; the last case occurred about q year
| tl,af lr-, Ia